- HomePlus Hostel and Andrew the owner
- Alexandra Book Shop
- Gellert Hill
He was a snorer. It was a weird sort of development of snoring. It started quite gently, a sort of breathy rumble, but then in the middle of the night I was woken up by a snore that sounded like he was eating a pringle. Really loud. Every time he breathed in, it was another pringle being crunched all in one. He munched a whole tube. If I hadn't been so tired, I'd have been amazed. I put in my ear phones, risking death by strangulation of the wire (mum always used to warn about this) and listened to some Brian Eno until he got off the train around 5am. I was too tired to look out the window to see where we were. I think we were in Slovakia. Later I had a look as we went into Hungary, and saw this:
I arrived in Budapest around 8.30am at Keleti station, and as it was a weekday it was rush hour. Arrival was similar to landing in Kathmandu a few years ago. As soon as you're on the platform, there are about 20 people asking if you need a cab. I find this a little overwhelming when you've just got off of a 10hour overnight train ride and need a few minutes to get your bearings. I stormed past them and arrogantly decided rather than get the advised metro and tram, I'd walk to the hostel to avoid the commuters. Turns out I hadn't got my bearings at all, and so I ended up walking 15mins in the wrong direction and having to backtrack. Still, as it was quite early it wasn't too hot and Budapest really is a lovely city to look at. At that time in the morning there also weren't many pedestrians in the back streets so I could slowly amble around looking up at all the buildings without being in anyone's way.
Two hours later I arrived at the HomePlus Hostel on Balissi Balint, toward the North of Pest, right near the Parliament buildings. I buzzed in to this huge old building, and went through to the entrance hall it shared with a few other residents and businesses. There were these two wide, old stairways either side of a hall, which lead onto a courtyard out back. They were a few old bikes resting on the stairs and against the walls. It looked like the entrance to a church, with this high ceiling and patterned grates in the door. Really cool. I was greeted by the Hungarian owner, Andrew. He had an arty flop of grey hair, permanently crinkled, laughing eyes and some little spectacles. He was so warm and welcoming, I think I almost got a hug.
He gave me some chocolate and sat me down to give me an amazingly descriptive run down of Budapest (pronounced Budapesht, but I'm going to feel like an idiot if I start pronouncing it properly at home). He used to be a literature teacher, so said he is permanently in education mode, but I told him that knowing nothing about Hungary, that's pretty useful to me. He didn't mind this; as long as I knew we were in Budapest and not Bucharest, that was a good start. Andrew told me about a friend of his called Gabo who helped out from time to time, but REALLY liked to talk, so to watch out. Gabo is apparently a millionaire (ex-investor) and lives in Vienna, but has properties elsewhere. He never married because (someone quoted him later to me) "it's cheaper to have two girlfriends than one wife". Andrew said he was really tight, but he helped him out on reception and I think they had one of those lifelong, frustrating but valued friendships.
I was sharing a five bed dorm with a Turkish girl (I never met her) and a Welsh guy, also called Andrew. Though because in his school class growing up there were three Andrew Davis', he had been called Benji (his middle name) growing up. He had a strong Welsh accent and said he was from South Wales. I mentioned the only place I knew near there was Cwmaman (where the Stereophonics are from) and he said that was only a few valleys over. Later I learned he'd shared a beer with Stuart Cable once. So I didn't sound too creepy, I said I wasn't such a fan anymore, forgetting that the pyjama top I was carrying was an old Phonics t-shirt...
Hungarian Andrew asked me if I wanted the bed made, but from his expression I could tell he was hoping I'd say no. He told me it was his least favourite job, and in the five years he's had the hostel he's changed over 3,000 beds.
I had a headache; the first morning I hadn't started with a coffee so clearly a worrying withdrawal symptom. I left and headed to a book shop Andrew recommended which was open until 10pm and often had musicians in. Sounded like heaven. Of course, I got lost and found myself walking by the horribly named 'Museum of Terror' which described the world war atrocities and weapons. I decided not to go in but bought The Pianist on my Kindle (again under Andrew's guidance) and sat in the book cafe reading and eating cake. The bookshop was called Alexandra and was on Andrassy Street. It was pretty posh and I figured it'd be expensive, but after two cappuccinos and a cake, it only came to about 3quid.
After a friendly conversation with the waitress about my Kindle, from here I took an unguided wander through town, heading through the Jewish quarter, which due to the
Nazis, fell into disrepair and is now the home of the alternative bar scene. It again had this sort of grunge cool feel to the place. I then walked across the Erzsebet Bridge and headed up Gellert Hegy; like Letenske Sady, it's a steep climb through a wooded area to give amazing views of the city. It was really hot and I think I gave myself sunstroke, so at the top of the hill I stopped at the expensive restaurant and ordered a beer (it didn't even occur to me to get water). The view was incredible. It was so warm that the horizon was really hazy, and it felt like I was in a mediterranean holiday resort.
So this was on the Buda side. The river runs from North to South, splitting what used to be two separate cities, Buda and Pest. Buda has an older style and up on another hill there's a huge castle on old town. I was bursting for the loo, and yet again managed to get lost. I wasn't even paying attention to the buildings as I was so single-minded, so I'll have to go back later and check it out with a lighter bladder. I eventually found somewhere, paying 200 Florins (345 Florins is about £1) and I think of the entire trip, that will be the best money I've spent. Seriously.
I'd agreed to meet Welsh Andrew for drinks, so as the sun was setting, I tried to head back across to Pest. This city seems to keep making me want to repeat myself, and so at least three times on the way back, I doubled back on my path. The timing was perfect though. As I eventually found the river, the sun was lowering leaving the sky first a beautiful purple, then red, then this crazy bright orange.
Made it back to the hostel to find Welsh Andrew watching folk youtube videos with Gabo, who made a few jokes with me when I came in and then giggled to himself. An American duo had arrived to fill our room. Catherine was just on a break from a term ("semester") in Turkey, and Beau had been wooffing for three weeks on an island in Greece. He'd just graduated from an arts degree and was starting a big adventure around Europe. I showered and then went to ask Hungarian Andrew recommendations for bars. He gave me a flyer to a place called 'The Enchanted Forest' and some discount cards, but we never found the place. He kept repeating 'you two are going out...together...' with a twinkle in his eye like he was setting us up on a date. As we left, I felt we both got a nudge and a wink from him.
We half-heartedly looked for The Enchanted Forest before heading to a bar Welsh Andrew had been to before in the Jewish district. We ordered some beers (490 Florins) and then found a table outside. So this is what I learnt about Andrew:
He had come to Budapest as a base to go to the Wales/Croatia match in Croatia. It was too small a game to qualify for the stadium in Zagreb, so was in the middle of nowhere, and you couldn't fly there from the UK. He'd ended up staying in a hostel with loads of Croatians, and spent the day before the match being bought drinks by a German Croat called Tony from Stuttgart, and got a ride the match on a Croatian team bus. He said Tony knew everyone, and a few of them looked like Croatian Mafia. Still, he'd rather meet some new people than only hang out with the Welsh. He'd travelled all around Europe going to football matches and every time I mentioned a place, it seemed he'd been. He went to Lithuania for a match, but ended up missing it as he made friends with some locals who took him to the beach. He lived in his home town and had a really straight forward view on work and life. He earnt money over the summers working for a couple who owned a burger van. With the work, he went all over the UK to Steam Ralleys (which apparently stay open to 1am sometimes), Shooting Events (where the van served steak fillets to tweed wearing posh guys), and even worked an MOD event in South Wales serving soldiers and arms companies. He earned enough doing this to save for all his European trips and to cover living costs for the next few months in Wales. £105 a month in rent. Mental.
Andrew was also involved in Welsh Politics. He knew the guy campaigning for Welsh Language Music (Jamie Bevan), and himself had organised an Anti-Monarchy event the previous year, though he wasn't all that aggressive in his beliefs. He just generally filled me in on Welsh culture and education. We stayed out until about 1, and then headed back as he was getting up the next day to go home.
End of Day 18.
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